Indiana University Athletics
Jenny Kim Diary
3/21/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
March 21, 2006
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - For each women's golf tournament during the 2006 spring campaign, IUHOOSIERS.com will have an Indiana women's golfer who will keep a player diary for the fans enjoyment. Below is junior Jenny Kim's journal kept during the UNLV Spring Invitational on March 13-15.
March 12, 2006
The first day of our Las Vegas trip started at 6 A.M. because our tee time for the practice round was at 7:30 A.M. All of us were struggling a little because we just flew in late last night with 3 hours of time difference from Indiana. The temperature was about 40, which was not what we expected; however, all of us were prepared for the weather. The name of the course is "Boulder Creek", and it took about 15 minutes to get to the golf course from our hotel. The wind was blowing very strong which made our body temperature lower. Although all of us had carts, some of us preferred to walk to stay warm. The course did not look that hard, but there are few factors to make this course hard such as shorter grass, waste bunkers, and hard greens. All of us had our own yardage book to write specific things about each hole. Our coaches took pictures of every hole which was used as visual aid for our meeting. Each of us took turns to explain what the hole looked like and what to remember. I was kind of nervous during the round because my mom was flying in from Korea. As soon as we got done, I got the phone call from my mom. Not only my mom but also other parents came in town today, so we decided to go to buffet restaurant at the hotel. It was just so good to see all the parents again.
March 13, 2006
We had our second lowest team score today which was 301 with one 68 and four scores in the 70's. The weather was a lot warmer than yesterday which has helped us to shoot low. Also it was easier to aim right at the pin because there was less wind. It is the first time that my mom got to watch me play, so I had a little more pressure on myself. The funny thing was that I was leading the tournament until #8 with 2 under par, but I had a bogie on #9; however, I was one under going to #15. I had a triple on this hole which hurt my score. There is a waste bunker on the right side and water on the left side of the fairway. I finished with 77 which meant that my last three holes were bad. I was not satisfied with my score, but I learned that I should finish strong. Shannon started off with a bogie, but she ended up with 68. I was playing right behind her and could see that she was making everything. Tara started off with an 8 on the first hole, but she had a strong finish with 78. Elaine and Amber had 76 and 79 which was solid playing to help the team score. Katie struggled today, but I know that she will come back tomorrow. I also was glad to see our coaches happy.
March 14, 2006
Today was little tougher than yesterday due to the wind. The wind can make this course play harder and more difficult to control distances. Because of the strange wind, we had less chance to hit closer to the pin. My score was not good, but I was happy to finish number 6 with a par which I had tripled yesterday. As soon as I got done with my round, I went to watch the girls playing. First of all, I was very happy for Katie that she was making a good come back. Elaine finished with score 74 which was better than yesterday. Shannon was playing fine, but I could tell that she was not satisfied with herself. Number 18 was the trouble hole for most girls because they lost one to two more strokes on that hole. After we got back to the hotel, we had a short team meeting to discuss what we should do for the last round. Then, we went to the MGM Grand Hotel to eat at another buffet. Coach Fin and I had wanted to eat crab legs, but the other girls were more into the dessert table. After the girls and I had that huge dinner, we knew that we had to play better tomorrow. I really hope that all of us do our best to play well tomorrow and finish this tournament strong.
March 15, 2006
Today was very exciting for all of us because Shannon was the medalist for UNLV invitational. The rest of us had a rough day, but she made our day better. The golf course played really hard due to the tough conditions. The wind was blowing hard and the ground was so hard that the ball did not get any spin. Since I got to finish playing earlier than everybody else like yesterday, I got to watch the other girls playing from #16 through #18. Everybody finished their last holes well, especially, I really enjoyed watching Shannon. Her game was getting really serious because she was tied for the first until #16. #17 was a par 3 hole, and she made a birdie putt from 10ft. None of us knew how the other girl were playing, so we just had to wait on Shannon to finish #18 fine. Shannon was three under going to the last hole which most girls had troubles with. The rest of us were sitting by the green and watching her ball coming down the fairway. Because the wind was blowing hard, her ball would not stop. The ball kept rolling towards to the water, but it stopped rolling right in front of the cart path. Shannon was walking towards her ball with coach and looked really confident. She had her second shot about 72 yards from the green and knocked it down to two feet. All of us could not even breathe until she putted out because we knew that she was going to win the tournament for sure with that birdie putt. Right after Shannon made her putt, all of us ran to her to give her a team hug. I think today can be the best part of our trip and I was super glad for her and her family.
